jan_coco_day's reviews
135 reviews

The Changeling by Victor LaValle

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.0

Juliet: The Life and Afterlives of Shakespeare's First Tragic Heroine by Sophie Duncan

informative

4.0

Duncan expertly tracks Juliet's innumerable incarnations from the (male) actors the role was written for, to society's obsession with dead girls, to how she is a symbol of almost anything throughout history from colonial powers to rebellion, from ancient values to current values (fun fact: fascist Italy used Juliet as a symbol of their values--even though she couldn't be more antifascist). Duncan even profiles real couples who have been named "Romeos" and "Juliets" in recent history. 

In searching for Juliet, Duncan searches for the soul of womanhood and sacrifice. 

One of my best reads of 2023.

The Orphanage of Gods by Helena Coggan

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

Contains very cool world-building. The downside of cool world-building is that I want to know more backstory than what is available in the text. Genetics are usually more complex (messier) than what is presented here, but the author's timeline only encompasses one generation (sort of), so perhaps there hasn't been enough time allocated for more complex genetics.  

Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

An indictment of white beauty and wellness capitalism, in which the broken bodies of women are both the cost and the product. The way Huang writes about music as a physical, transformative thing is unlike anything I've ever read. It makes music seem kind of terrifying. 

Revenge by Yōko Ogawa

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Eleven short stories that are interconnected by dark strings that weave a tapestry of misery and violence in the lives of the characters who inhabit it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent

Tell Me I'm Worthless by Alison Rumfitt

dark emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

"There is a difference between a ghost story and a haunted house story. This feels so basic, but also so hard to articulate. A ghost story is about the thing that it tells you it is about: a ghost, an ephemeral thing from beyond the grave trying to contact the living. A haunted house story is about more than that. It is about structure, architecture, and history."

 One of the most fucked up things I have ever read. I love it. 

Clever Creatures of the Night by Samantha Mabry

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

Reads more like a missing-girl thriller with a folk horror atmosphere, than true horror, so it's great for readers who want the horror vibe, but not to be too scared. When I say that we need to include children's and teen fiction in discussions about literary fiction, I am talking about this book specifically.  

The book is so good, I will forgive Samantha Mabry for choosing the actual extinct volcano that is thirteen miles from my house to erupt. (Rude)

Also noteworthy: there are no adults and no romance in this book.

One of the best books I read in 2023.

Medusa by Nataly Gruender

I read an early digital manuscript I obtained as an employee of Hachette/Redhook.

Full review closer to pub date.

The Enchanted Lies of Céleste Artois by Ryan Graudin

I read an early digital manuscript I obtained as an employee of Hachette/Redhook.

Full review closer to pub date.

The Dead Don't Need Reminding: In Search of Fugitives, Mississippi, and Black TV Nerd Shit by Julian Randall

emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

A family-history-pop-cultural-analysis-memoir-road-trip about surviving as a queer black person in 21st century America. How a person can be so much and not enough